Greta Nerad
Staff Writer
Members of the Mira Costa Drama and Tech Department opened their second of two fall plays, “The Diviners” on Nov. 3 in the small theater.
The play is set in the town of Zion, Indiana, and tells the story of Buddy Layman (sophomore Tucker St. Ivany), a boy with a crippling fear of water, who touches the lives of those he meets while on his journey, including former preacher C.C. Showers (Drama President and senior Noah Geller).
“I think all of the messages [in the play] will resonate with people regardless of age or where they’re from or what time period,” Geller said.
A total of 78 Drama students auditioned on Sept. 5, and Costa Drama Department Executive Director Cary Jordahl announced the 19 cast members on Sept. 8. Jordahl double-cast all female leads to allow more students to participate in the show, he said. The cast began the workshop and rehearsal process immediately after Jordahl assigned their roles, working for weeks to get to know the story and their specific characters, St. Ivany said.
Rehearsals took place four days per week for two- to five hours each day. The two casts performed in six shows, which took place on on Nov. 3, Nov. 4, Nov. 9 and last Friday and Saturday.
“Preparing for the show was a long and difficult process, and because it is a dramatic show, we really had to dig deeper into our characters,” St. Ivany said.
The Tech Department designed sets, props and costumes to fit the 1930’s time period. The Tech Department spent countless hours preparing sets and costumes, including trees and fishing poles, Jordahl said. During the show, tech students worked as ushers and stagehands and controlled the lighting and audio.
“[The show takes place in] a specific time period and is set in a poor farm town, so every prop we had to really search for or make ourselves to fit the time period, which made finding props hard,” Assistant Stage Manager and senior Reilly Fox said.
Drama will host its annual Holiday Benefit show on Dec. 5 in the small theater, where Drama students will perform skits, musical performances and comedy acts. The ticket proceeds will go to the Adopt-A-Family Organization, which provides holiday presents, clothes and house supplies for underprivileged families.
“The Holiday Benefit is one of the most glorious events of the year,” drama member and senior Toby Kamish said. “It’s awesome because you get to see talent shine through for a good cause.”
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